Creative Think Tank

Infinite Puzzles by Nervous System

Nervous System is an American design studio that explores the interconnection between science, art, and technology. Jesse Louis-Rosenberg and Jessica Rosenkrantz produce their designs using 3D printing, webGL (Web Graphics Library) and computer simulation – programs based on processes and patterns found in nature. The interesting thing about Nervous System Studio is that they invite their customers to co-create products along with them, whether through online design applications or their own puzzles. The shapes of the puzzle-pieces were designed with the help of a computer simulation program of dendritic solidification. A crystal growth process, similar to the formation of snowflakes, can produce a variety of cut styles.

The Jigsaw puzzles, as the designers say, aim “to marry the artistry of traditional, hand-crafted jigsaw puzzles with the possibilities of new technologies”.The Infinity Puzzle is one of their innovative puzzles that tiles continuously. It has no fixed shape, no starting point, and no edges. It can be assembled in thousands of different ways.

Topologically, the Infinite Galaxy Puzzle maps to a Klein bottle, an impossible 3D shape where the inside and outside are mathematically indistinguishable. The pieces from the right side can attach to the left side but only after flipping over. Just like the Klein bottle’s surface has no inside or outside, the puzzle has no up or down side. You can start the puzzle anywhere on any side, making it extra challenging. This puzzle is adorned with a photograph of the galactic center of the Milky Way. The image is continuous from one side of the surface to the other, so one cannot see the entire photo at once. Explore the galaxy while assembling the puzzle in multiple ways. The puzzle also features special space themed whimsy pieces.

We are enchanted by the way this reflects the trend with the philosophy of our time: there is no “right way”, only the unlimited creative process.